Latch for mine-car doors



No. 752,265. PATENTED FEB. 16, 1904.

l C. H. SMITH.

LATCH FOR MINE GAR DOORS.

APPLI GKTION PILED'HOV. 2, 1903.

N0 MODEL.

'gvdvilgesses which the end of the latch engages.

. no. teases.

I'atented February 16, 1904.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHRISTIAN H. SMITH, OF TRAUGER, PENNSYLVANIA.

LATCH FOR MINE-CAR DOORS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 752,265, dated February16, 1904'.-

Application filed Novembe 2, 1903. Serial No. 179,617. (N 0 model.)

To all whom it may concern: 7

Be it known that I, CHRISTIAN H. SMITH, a citizen of the United States,residing at Trauger, in the countyof VVestmoreland and State ofPennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Latch for Mine- Car Doors,of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to latches for minecar doors.

The principal object of this invention isto provide a simple, durable,inexpensive, and

useful latch for mine-car doors of such design that the weight of theload within the minecar may by pressing against the door assist inreleasing the latch, so that the door may be'opened and permit thecontents of the car tobe dumped. j

A further object'of the invention is to provide asirnple and inexpensivelatch for minecar doors which will not be easily broken and which willbe absolutely reliable in operation.

With the objects above mentioned and others in view, which will bereadily seen as the invention is fully disclosed, the same consistsinthe novel construction and combination of parts of a latch formine-car doors hereinafter described, shown in the accompanying drawingsillustrative thereof, and having the novel features thereof specificallypointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings, Figure l is an end eleva tion of a mine-car having theimproved latch applied thereto. Fig. 2 is adetail view of the keeper bywhich the latch-operating lever is secured in position. Fig. 3 is adetail view of the keeper on the bottom of the car with Fig. {i is adetail view of one of the clips in which the latch turns.

Referring to the drawings, in which corre sponding parts are designatedby similar characters of reference, C designates a mine-car provided inthe end with a dumping-door D. The door D is preferably provided at thetop with a cross-bar 1, the ends of which project through bearings inthe sides-of the car and afford journals for the support of the swingingdoor. The door may be of any ordinary or preferred construction, beingshown in the present instance as comprising a plurality of upper end thebar 4 is slotted, as shown at 8,

and a bent lever 9 is pivotally secured in the slot 8, as best seen inFig. 1. The lever forms the means for throwing the latch into operativeposition and is adapted for engagement with akeeper 10,attached to themineecar door, as shownin Fig. 1. To limit the movement of the lever9,'a chain 11 is secured at one end to the lever and has the other endsecured to the door D of the car by a staple orother suitable fastening.The lateral projection 5 at the lower end of the latch-bar is adapted toengage with a keeper 12, rigidly fastened to the bottom of the car andhaving an upturned end 13 of the form shown in Fig. 1, with which theprojection 5 engages when the latch is in operative position. Theupturned end 13 of the keeper 12 rises above the bottom edge of thecar-door, and in order to permit the car-door to swing outward when thelatch isdisengaged a notch 1a is formed in the bottom of the 'door atsuch a point that when the latch is released the car-dOormay swingoutward and the end 13 of the keeper pass through the notch. hen thelatch is in the position shown in Fig. 1, with the lever 9 in engagementwith the keeper 12, it will be seen that turning of the latch-bar 4 inits bearings is impossible and the vibration of the car in transit overthe rails cannot dislodge the lever from the keeper. The pressure of theload within the car against the lower part of the door will of courseforce the lateral projection 5 of the latch-bar 1 into contact with theend 13 of the keeper 12, and the pressure exerted upon the latch willtend to rotate it in ist bearings and will so press the lever 9 forciblyagainst the keeper 12, thus preventing the lever from resting loose inthe space behind the keeper. When it is desired to release the latch inorder to dump the contents of the car, the lever 9 may be easily raisedabove the top of the keeper 12, and as soon as the lever is no longer inengagement with the keeper the pressure of the load in the car againstthe door Will suffice to turn the latch in its bearing-clips and permitthe door to swing outward.

From the foregoing description and the drawings illustrative thereof itwill be noted that the construction of the latch is extremely simple,that the amount of material used therein is small, and that the partsare so arranged and designed that suflicient strength is possessed byall the parts upon which the strain falls, so that the possibility ofbreakage is reduced to a minimum.

When it is desired to close the mine-car and secure it by means of thelatch after the load has been dumped, the door must be swung inwarduntil the bottom thereof has passed over the upturned end 13 of thekeeper 12. The latch-bar 4 will then be turned in its bearings by meansof the lever 9 until the lever can enter the space behind the keeper,when the lever will be forced down into engagement with the keeper andthe latch secured in operative position.

While the invention has been described and illustrated in the preferredform of embodiment thereof, it is obvious that various changes in theform, proportions, and exact mode of assemblage of the elements may beresorted to without departing from the spirit of the invention orsacrificing any of its advantages, and I do not limit myself to theexact form and arrangement of the elements shown and described.

Having thus described the construction and operation of my invention,what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination with a door, of a latchbar arranged for rotation onsaid do or and having a lateral projection, a keeper adapted forengagement by said lateral projection, alever on said latch-bar, andmeans mounted on the door for engagement by said lever to hold the latchin operative position.

2. The combination with ahorizontally-pivoted mine-car door, of arotatable latch-bar I vertically arranged thereon and having a lateralprojection, a keeper on the car adapted for engagement with said lateralprojection, a lever attached to the latch-bar, and means on the car-doorto engage with said lever and hold the latch in operative position.

3. The combination in a device of the clas described, of a rotatablelatch-bar having a lateral projection on one side thereof and a leverarranged at the opposite side, a keeper for engagement with said lateralprojection when the latch is in operative position, and means forengagement with the lever to hold the latch in operative position.-

4. The combination with a horizontally-pivoted mine-car door, of arotatable latch-bar vertically arranged thereon and having a lateralprojection at its lower end, a keeper mounted on the bottom of the carand adapted to be engaged by said lateral projection when the latch isin operative position, a lever attached to said latch-bar and extendingtherefrom on the side opposite said lateral projection, and a keeper onthe door to secure said lever when the latch is in operative position.

5. The combination witha horizontally-pivoted mine-car door, of arotatable latch-bar vertically mounted thereon, said latch-bar having alateral projection at the lower end adapted to swing under the door, akeeper on the bottom of the car for engagement with said lateralprojection when the latch is in operative position, a lever attached tosaid latch-bar,

and means for engagement with said lever to hold the latch in operativeposition.

6. The combination with a horizontal ly-pivoted mine-car door, of arotatable latch-bar vertically disposed thereon and having a lateralprojection, a keeper mounted on the car for engagement with said lateralprojection when the latch is in operative position, apivoted levermounted in the upper end of said latchbar, and a keeper on the car-doorfor engagement with said lever to hold the latch in operative position.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto aflixedmy signature in the presence of two witnesses.

CHRISTIAN H. SMITH.

Witnesses:

M. L. FAUsoLD, L. T. SMITH.

